Breaking the Stigma, McGill 2022

BREAKING THE STIGMA
mental wellbeing in academia
McGill University

September 20, 2022
Dr. Abbie Stevens, she/her/hers

MSU Museum CoLab Studio

[email protected]; @abigailStev
You may want a notes doc or pen and paper nearby for notes!

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DISCLAIMER
I am a former astronomy postdoc, now outreach manager.

I am not a mental health professional.

I have no training in therapy, counseling, or psychology.

This is a peer-to-peer discussion, not expert advice.

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➤ Mental health: emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing

➤ How you see yourself, how you interact with others, etc.

➤ Mental health is important!!

➤ Mental illness, mental health problems: factors (situational, clinical/
biological/chronic) that get in the way of your emotional, psychological, and social
wellbeing
WHAT DOES “MENTAL WELLBEING” OR “MENTAL HEALTH” MEAN?

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➤ Mental health: emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing

➤ How you see yourself, how you interact with others, etc.

➤ Mental health is important!!

➤ Mental illness, mental health problems: factors (situational, clinical/
biological/chronic) that get in the way of your emotional, psychological, and social
wellbeing

➤ Why should we discuss this?

➤ While individual mental wellbeing is very personal, a community has a
responsibility for its ‘climate’ and towards its members
WHAT DOES “MENTAL WELLBEING” OR “MENTAL HEALTH” MEAN?

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EXAMPLES OF MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS
➤ Depression

➤ Anxiety

➤ Stress, work pressure

➤ Burnout

➤ ADHD, ADD

➤ Substance overuse/abuse

➤ Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

➤ Grief, loss

➤ Homesickness

➤ Seasonal A
ff
ective Disorder

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COMMON CAUSES OF DEPRESSION & ANXIETY IN ACADEMICS
➤ Impostor fears

➤ Advisor/department
fi
t

➤ Family and relational problems

➤ Lack of social support (within and outside department)

➤ Prior trauma triggered by heightened grad school/job pressures

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THE PANDEMIC IS STILL ONGOING, HAS SUCKED FOR ALL OF US
➤ Regular routine went completely out the window, developing new routines

➤ Still somewhat stuck at home, sometimes with roommates

➤ Children are home o
ff
-and-on; sometimes homeschooling

➤ Hard to visit family if far away and/or immunocompromised

➤ Still sometimes di
ff
i
cult to see friends in person

➤ Usual coping mechanisms for stressful times are not always available

➤ Depression, anxiety, and sometimes homesickness are on the rise

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1 in 4 will have some kind of mental illness in their lifetime.
Mental Illnesses.
1 in 10
Source(s): Psychological Bulletin, The Harris Poll, Haris Interactive, Nielsen, “U.S. Smartphone Battle Heats up”, 2011 DuPont Automotive Color Popularity Report, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, World Health Organization. iPhone is a trademark of Apple Inc.
1 in 6
More common than grey cars
1 in 4
Just how common is 1 in 4?
Just as common as iPhone® customers.
60 Million
Americans are
affected each year.
More common than left-handed people
How can we fix it? Talking.
The more we talk, the more we’ll realize that these illnesses
are not unique and that they are treatable.
It’s how we’ll make it ok.
A public survey showed most people
thought mental illnesses were related to:
THIS IS
STIGMA.
STRESS
LACK OF WILLPOWER
WEAKNESS
1 in 7
More common than
people with tattoos

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➤ List: abigailstevens.com/studies-of-mental-wellbeing

➤ Graduate students are at least twice as likely to experience negative
mental wellbeing, especially depression and anxiety, compared to a
similarly educated non-grad-school population

➤ Gender & sexuality minorities had signi
fi
cantly higher rates of problems
than cis-men

➤ Work and organizational context (incl. satisfaction with mentorship/
advising) are signi
fi
cant predictors of PhD students’ mental health
ON THE BRIGHT SIDE: YOU ARE NOT ALONE

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➤ “Signs of depression and anxiety soar among US grad students during pandemic”
(Nature career news, Aug 2020). Out of more than 15k grads:

➤ Indications of anxiety rose 50% compared to last year

➤ 39% screened positive for anxiety disorders

➤ 32% screened positive for major depression

➤ Depression more common in students in physical sciences

➤ “As the pandemic erodes grad student mental health, academics sound the alarm”
(Science careers article, Sept 2020). Out of 4,000 US STEM grads:

➤ 40% meet criteria for generalized anxiety disorder

➤ 37% meet criteria for major depressive disorder

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➤ “Postdocs in crisis: science cannot risk losing the next generation” (Nature
editorial, Sept 2020)

➤ “Pandemic darkens postdocs’ work and career hopes” (Nature career feature, Sept
2020)

➤ Out of 7,670 int’l postdocs surveyed:

➤ 61% think the pandemic has worsened their career prospects, another 25%
aren’t sure if it has or not

➤ 23% have sought help for anxiety or depression caused by work, another 26%
would like to seek help

➤ 51% are considering leaving academia because of work-related mental health
concerns

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➤ “Academia needs a reality check: Life is not back to normal” (Science careers article,
Aug 2020)

➤ Resources from int’l working scientists on how to cope with COVID’s impact on
scienti
fi
c careers (Nature collection, June-Sept 2020)(Science Letters to the Editor,
June-Sept 2020), featuring:

➤ Solo parenting

➤ Fieldwork/travel requirements for work

➤ What conferences may look like in the post-COVID future

➤ How pandemics create inequality and amplify oppression

➤ Can we use this chaos to “
fi
x” academia?

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UNIVERSITY RESOURCES

TO PROMOTE MENTAL WELLBEING

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What mental wellbeing resources do you know of at your
university?

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MCGILL RESOURCES
➤ McGill Student Wellness Hub: https://www.mcgill.ca/wellness-hub/

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MCGILL RESOURCES
➤ McGill Student Wellness Hub: https://www.mcgill.ca/wellness-hub/

➤ McGill Domestic Violence Clinic: https://www.mcgill.ca/dvc/

➤ Suicide Action Montreal: +1-866-277-3553

➤ From physics dept, for all McGill grad students: https://www.physics.mcgill.ca/
resources/grads.html

➤ For postdocs: https://www.physics.mcgill.ca/resources/ras.html

➤ Ask your doctor for a referral to a therapist (who will accept your health insurance,
if applicable)

➤ Talk with peers, trusted colleague, and/or mentor (in your department or
elsewhere)

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In an ideal scenario, what resources would you like to
see? At your department, faculty, and university levels.

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COPING TOOLS

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MY WELLBEING CHECKLIST FROM MY PHD

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How do you maintain your mental wellbeing?

What do you do when you’re feeling overwhelmed?

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HOW DO YOU MAINTAIN YOUR MENTAL WELLBEING?
➤ Drink enough water daily

➤ Make getting a full night of sleep every night a priority (8-9 hours)

➤ Taking breaks at work to walk around the building or outside

➤ Abbie got into “dance walks” during pandemic, still does them

➤ Exercise regularly (yoga, pilates, jogging,
fi
tness classes, etc.)

➤ Have an exercise buddy!

➤ Check for free weekly
fi
tness classes through grad and/or athletics program

➤ Try not to rely on ca
ff
eine and sugar to get your energy, since you’ll crash soon after

➤ Get a massage every few months as your budget allows

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➤ Enforce regular working hours. More than 40-50 hours per week is unsustainable and has
diminishing (or even negative) returns

➤ Connect with colleagues (don’t su
ff
er in silence)

➤ Spend regular time doing hobbies outside of work

➤ Cooking with others, gardening, team sports, artistic pursuits

➤ Spend time with loved ones (family, friends, signi
fi
cant other, etc.)

➤ Daily meditation (with an app like Headspace or Calm)

➤ Read a book for fun! Abbie likes Bill Bryson and Terry Pratchett

➤ Take real vacations. Turn on your email auto-responder and leave your laptop at home!

➤ Turn o
ff
noti
fi
cations for work email (& social media apps) on phone

➤ Don’t check your results before going to bed (FOR REAL)

➤ See a counselor/therapist regularly, take prescribed medication

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➤ Enforce regular working hours. More than 40-50 hours per week is unsustainable and has
diminishing (or even negative) returns

➤ Connect with colleagues (don’t su
ff
er in silence)

➤ Spend regular time doing hobbies outside of work

➤ Cooking with others, gardening, team sports, artistic pursuits

➤ Spend time with loved ones (family, friends, signi
fi
cant other, etc.)

➤ Daily meditation (with an app like Headspace or Calm)

➤ Read a book for fun! Abbie likes Bill Bryson and Terry Pratchett

➤ Take real vacations. Turn on your email auto-responder and leave your laptop at home!

➤ Turn o
ff
noti
fi
cations for work email (& social media apps) on phone

➤ Don’t check your results before going to bed (FOR REAL)

➤ See a counselor/therapist regularly, take prescribed medication
From discussions: Though few people can do all their coursework in
a ‘standard’ work day, it should not be an unbearable time burden.
Talk to your prof about how much time you spend on their course so
that they can shorten assignments, adjust deadlines, etc. as needed.

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WHAT HELPS YOU WHEN YOU’RE IN “PANIC MODE”?
➤ Get up from your desk and go for a walk, in a nature area on campus, doing loops
around the building

➤ Take 10 slow, deep diaphragmatic breaths

➤ Have a snack and a glass of water. Your brain can’t work when it’s out of fuel. There is
time for this.

➤ Listen to a music playlist that helps you calm down and re-center yourself

➤ Use “stress ball”-type objects (like a
fi
dget cube) to distract your mind and give it
something else to focus on

➤ Break down Insurmountable Task into many bite-sized chunks. Write it all down, cross o
ff
as you do them. Use an analog list so that you actually cross it o
ff
and not just delete
the item digitally

➤ “SOS” sessions in the Headspace meditation app

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How can you plan to take care of yourself before you
become overwhelmed?

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MENTAL WELLBEING, PRODUCTIVITY, AND TIME MANAGEMENT
➤ Often related in discussion and practice, but not the same

➤ Work-life balance: working constantly will disrupt your personal life, negatively
impact your mental health; not working enough will not lead to success in grad
school or job

➤ Have a mentor in addition to your advisor, someone who knows your research
fi
eld
but doesn’t have an investment in your current position/grant

➤ Provide reality check, unbiased advice

➤ Research does not have a linear input-output relation

➤ Time management is one of the most important things you learn

➤ People at all career levels in academia can feel like they aren’t productive enough
and struggle with mental wellbeing

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MENTORING AGREEMENTS
➤ Provides structure for a meta-conversation on mentoring and feedback styles, level
and type of supervision

➤ Intended to be the beginning of a continuous conversation, not a full and complete
one-o
ff
conversation

➤ "Ten simple rules for developing a mentor–mentee expectations document" by
Masters and Kreeger 2017, PLoS Computational Biology

➤ Tailor expectations to audience and environment

➤ Expectations are a two-way street

➤ Convey the big picture

➤ Don’t forget the nitty gritty

➤ Articulate boundaries

➤ Example 1; example 2; example 3
h/t L. Chomiuk and L. Walkowicz

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What can we collectively do as a community to improve
mental wellbeing?

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ORGANIZING FOR COMMUNITY-BASED SOLUTIONS
➤ Talk amongst ourselves & with peers at other universities to see what is possible,
what a good outcome could look like

➤ For department/institute-level change, work with a (tenured) professor to advocate
for you

➤ Don’t strictly need a climate survey to take action; there are enough institution-
speci
fi
c and meta studies that show that grad students face signi
fi
cant mental
health problems (at individual and community levels)

➤ Organize with others (within faculty, or university-wide); if barred from
unionizing, create a grad student & postdoc council

➤ Ask national professional organization (e.g., American Physical Society, American
Astronomical Society) to do a site visit. Evaluate climate, identify problems, o
ff
er
department-level solutions
h/t L. Walkowicz for discussion and conversation

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INTERNET RESOURCES
See abigailstevens.com/mental-wellbeing-academia for an up-to-date list!

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LINKS TO RESOURCES
➤ Self-Care with Drs. Sarah, a podcast (see esp. ‘Meltdown’ episode)

➤ "Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy" by Dr. D.D. Burns, a book on doing Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy on yourself, recommended by therapists

➤ "The PTSD Workbook" by Dr. M.B. Williams and Dr. S. Pouijula, recommended by
social workers and therapists

➤ "Living Well With Depression and Bipolar Disorder" by J. McManamy

➤ #PhDchat, #ECRchat, @chron_ac, @AcademicChatter on Twitter

➤ "5 Things to Do (And Not Do) to Support Someone with Depression"

➤ MakeItOK.org: conversation scripts, posters, stats
all on abigailstevens.com/mental-wellbeing-academia

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ARTICLES WITH ADVICE AND PERSPECTIVES: GENERAL
➤ "I’d Whisper to My Student Self: You Are Not Alone"

➤ "Modest Advice for New Graduate Students"

➤ “20 Warning Signs Your Professor’s Abusing You”

➤ "Opening Up About Stress in Graduate School"

➤ "It's time for physicists to talk about mental health"

➤ "Mental Health Issues Among Graduate Students"

➤ “Mental health in academia is too often a forgotten footnote”

➤ "Is graduate school in chemistry bad for your mental health?"

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SELF-CARE
➤ "23 Ways to Treat Yourself Without Buying or Eating Anything"

➤ "Is That Self-Care or Self-Sabotage?"

➤ "What Nobody Tells You About Self-Care"

➤ "You Feel Like Shit" - an interactive
fl
owchart (also useful in a crisis)

➤ “Non-Binary People Share Their Self-Care Tips"

➤ @tinycarebot and @selfcare_tech on Twitter

➤ The most valuable self-care is building a life from which you don’t feel
a regular need to escape.

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ADVICE ON ADVISING
➤ “Good Advising” (written by a prof, for profs)

➤ "For grad students and postdocs, mental health begins with faculty"

➤ "The Invisible Injuries of Faculty Mental Health"

➤ "Aftermath of a Professor's Suicide"

➤ “How a student’s panic attack changed my approach to teaching”

➤ What To Say when someone tells you about a mental health problem

➤ National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity, productivity and wellbeing
resources for researchers and mentors

➤ Know what resources your university and department/institute have to point your
mentees towards

➤ If you are a mandatory reporter (most of us are), inform your students that you are and
strongly encourage them to go to the counseling center to get support without initiating a
(sometimes re-traumatizing) legal procedure

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INTERNET RESOURCES, COVID EDITION
➤ “Flattening the mental health curve is the next big coronavirus challenge”, The
Conversation

➤ “3 research-based ways to cope with the uncertainties of pandemic life”, The
Conversation

➤ “Tips for living online - lessons from six months of the COVID-19 pandemic”, The
Conversation

➤ More good stu
ff
from The Conversation

➤ “The emotionally challenging next phase of the pandemic”, The Atlantic

➤ “The world changes, and we grow”, Inside Higher Ed

➤ “The problems with pausing the tenure clock”, Inside Higher Ed

➤ More good stu
ff
from Inside Higher Ed’s blog Higher Ed Gamma

➤ For scienti
fi
c journalism about COVID, I really like Ed Yong’s writing at The Atlantic

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QUESTIONS, THOUGHTS, COMMENTS, IDEAS
See abigailstevens.com/mental-wellbeing-academia for links!

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Breaking the Stigma, McGill 2022

Breaking the Stigma, McGill 2022

Dr. Abbie Stevens

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